


on the way home

by thyjindomcome



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Anxiety, Literary References & Allusions, M/M, Self Confidence Issues, Self-Doubt, lit major!junhui, lit major!wonwoo, will add more in the coming chapters - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-05
Updated: 2020-12-05
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:29:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,694
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27889045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thyjindomcome/pseuds/thyjindomcome
Summary: If you ask Wonwoo about “home” you’ll only get an eye roll, a scoff, and a shrug as a reply. He was ready to act out of instinct, but not in front of his Non-Fiction Writing professor, especially when his grade depended on it.
Relationships: Jeon Wonwoo/Wen Jun Hui | Jun
Kudos: 2





	1. the assignment

**Author's Note:**

> hello!
> 
> i wrote this prompt and posted it on twitter (with a difft title!) but i decided to switch platforms since it's getting longer haha. this has been on my drafts for soooo long and just needed to get my feelings out. But I guess it's time to for it to see the light of day? not sure, either but let's take advantage of me being brave.
> 
> p.s. this is loosely based on real life  
> p.p.s. the word 'home' will be mentioned a lot hehe

Wonwoo’s on his second year of MA in Creative Writing when his Non-Fiction Writing professor announced the theme for their final work— a whole autobiography of their ‘home.’

“ _Cliché_ ,” he thought, but his colleagues think otherwise. As most of the class were foreigners or at least far from their so-called “home,” the class was ecstatic. The professor was quite proud of himself and his idea as everyone was already bubbling with ideas of what part of ‘home’ they’ll be writing about.

“ _It’s only the beginning of the semester and this class is already giving me a headache._ ”

Seeing as he’s the only one unhappy with the news, the professor calls him after class to ask what was wrong. You see, asking Wonwoo anything about ‘home’ always leaves him puzzled. All he knows about it are the following facts:

  1. His home country is in the Philippines.
  2. He grew up in the province of Zambales—Olongapo to be exact.
  3. He used to go home to an apartment near Tomas Morato when he was studying his Literature undergrad in Manila.
  4. When he moved to America after graduation, his mom called this tiny two-room apartment in downtown LA their “new home” for him and his dad.
  5. “Going home” now meant going back into hiding in this rented dorm room near uni.



Anything else other those, Wonwoo’s got nothing else on his mind.

Hearing Wonwoo's litany of facts and explanations, the professor smiles with eyes somehow sparkling, Then this is the perfect opportunity to find out what home means for you.” And just like that, he walks out leaving his student more confused than he was before.

“ _Great, a hero’s adventure at 24. Just. Perfect_.” With the feeling of school and responsibilities settling in, Wonwoo sighs heavily, grabbing his AirPods and playing his daily walking playlist.

Oh well, at least the day is done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello, again!
> 
> this is the first au i've written and published in my life, so advanced apologies if it's bad haha :c again, just needed to get my thoughts out there.
> 
> leave any comments if you want, they're highly appreciated! message me on twitter if u want: https://twitter.com/seokjintherain/


	2. ‘Who is he?’

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> wonwoo's living the life he's dreamed of since he was an undergrad, but somehow he feels an empty feeling in his chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is inspired by the University of Santo Tomas' (UST) freshman week— specifically, the Thomasian Welcome Walk. it's an exhilarating experience, tbh. one for the books!

Being an obedient and (slightly) competitive student, Wonwoo reads his course materials thoroughly and in advance, accomplishes his peer reviews with a critical eye yet encouraging advice, and he exposes his heart out in writing either with a cup of coffee or a bottle of beer—whatever mood he wanted to pin— until wee hours in the morning.

In short, he was living the life he wanted when he was an undergrad. But somehow, he couldn’t convince himself he was happy. By default, he opens up his phone to drown himself in music. He scrolls further down to one of his first few playlists— the first one he made when he stepped in Manila.

_[5 YEARS AGO]_

Wonwoo walks inside the campus with wide eyes and a fast-beating heart. He’s not sure it was the coffee he drank or the loud drum practice of UST Yellow Jackets but he’s definitely pumped.

Coming from Zambales, Manila was a far cry from the city he grew up in. Malls were present left and right, transportation wasn’t an issue (although maybe safety was), and there was always someone somewhere along the streets walking or taking a smoke— needless to say, it was full of life, and he was glad to be part of it.

But even though he’s excited about this ‘new city, new life’ kind of vibe, Wonwoo was still that shy and timid boy from Olongapo who was afraid that if he spoke too loud people would turn their heads and give him a bad look.

Unable to shake off old habits, he sat in corner of the room he deemed safe. Being it was the first week of classes for freshmen, it means they had the whole university to themselves without getting side-eyed by any upperclassmen. So they had orientations with their home organization and colleges, met some of their block mates and batchmates, got a tour of the whole university, and learned about its rich history and culture.

“ _Oh, what a place to be in,”_ Wonwoo thinks as he walks around campus one early morning. There was no homework, heck he didn’t even meet his professors yet, but he wanted to check out the school’s library before it was swarmed with students. Stopping by the library café, he orders an Americano and sets out to explore the building.

“ _Six whole floors of books of every kind and in every subject, you can think of— god, this is what heaven must look like,”_ he whispered to himself as he walks down aisles of the Humanities section. Looking at the titles and authors, a set of his favorite philosopher’s works caught his eye, and rests his cup on one of the shelves. Getting all giddy and excited, he takes a book from the shelves and starts flipping through the pages. Soon enough, Wonwoo’s lost in his own little world leaving his coffee to get cold.

Too caught up in his reading, Wonwoo forgets that today’s the last day of freshman week. As a tradition, the university holds its annual Freshman Walk, a special celebration wherein new students walk through the Arch of the Centuries as a symbolic way to welcome them into the community. He hears the drums get louder and some excited screams from outside the library. That’s when panic hits him as a.) he forgot the first culminating activity of his freshman year, and b.) he didn’t know where to go or who to contact as he hasn’t saved any of his block mates numbers yet.

“ _Wonwoo, calm down. Breathe in, and out. In and out.”_ He does this about three times before it fails and he’s back to square one. Not wanting to drown his spirits, he sets out to return the books he’s piled when someone pushed the books down again.

“You can leave them here, Jihoon would much prefer it if you let him return the books instead of you trying to figure out where they should be.”

As Wonwoo looks up at the sweet voice he just heard, he’s greeted with calm yet bright eyes paired with an equally bright and reassuring smile.

“Junhui. AB Lit, 2nd yr, and I’ve been assisting your block for the whole week. We were giving out the freebies for the walk when we had an extra set."

“H-how’d you know I was—”

“Oh, a little birdy told me,” Junhui said smirking. Seeing as Wonwoo wasn’t impressed by his answer, the speaker cleared his throat and explained, “Uhm, the student assistant in this section,” pointing towards the quiet boy in the center counter, “told me there was a freshie lit student enamored by the Humanities section— again.”

“A-again? This has happened before?”

“Unfortunately, yeah. We don’t blame you though, being in the presence of these books is very... comforting.”

 _"Of course,"_ Wonwoo thought. He’s in college, there are people like him who find solace in books and catharsis in writing. He wasn’t the odd one out in class anymore. Maybe finally he’s found his type of people. Before Wonwoo got lost in thought, Junhui lightly grabbed his wrist and forced him up.

“As much as I’d like to be sentimental, we have to get you through the Arch of the Centuries asap! Our college is next in line!”

Before Wonwoo could even reply, he’s up on his feet, being slightly pulled by Junhui—who even had waved goodbye at Jihoon with his free hand and ask him out for a beer later with friends. “ _Who is this Junhui?”_ but before he could think again, his feet and legs were getting slightly sore from all the stairs they’ve been going down on.

“You just really had to pick the 5th floor huh?” Junhui said panting. To be fair, Wonwoo didn’t know he’d be sprinting to go down so all he could muster was a stuttering “s-sorry.” Junhui giggled, “Cute… Let’s go, Wonwoo!”

Down the lobby, they both catch their breaths for a bit before Junhui tugs him outside the library and into the scorching heat. They brisk past people and crowds, hand in wrist, to get to the line where the College of Faculty and Letters was at. A few more walking and brushing of shoulders and gets Wonwoo in line— just in time before their college enters through the Arch.

“Jun! Wonwoo, right? Where have you been? You were about to be late to your own Welcome Walk!!” Seungcheol, the Literary Society’s Secretary, exclaimed with a slight panic on his face. While Joshua, one of Jun’s best friends, just rolls his eyes and hands Jun and him a water bottle.

“Stop overacting, Cheol,” Jun says in between gulps. “Jihoon spotted him in the Humanities section reading some Camus— a bit advanced, but who could blame him?” Suddenly the three block mates chanted with a monotonous tone, “We must imagine Sisyphus happy.”

If it were anyone else, they would have called them ‘weird.’ But Wonwoo just smiles to himself thinking, “ _I’m really where I belong.”_

As if Jun heard his thoughts, he turned and gave that same bright smile earlier. There goes his mind again, _“Who is Junhui?”_

Before he can mind even begin to process anything, the hosts call out his college and he finds himself being pushed by his block mates as they enter the Arch of the Centuries. With the ever-steady beat of the UST YJ’s drums and the excited shouts from the crowd, he’s now back in the freshman hype as he joins in the screaming to run through the Arch. Getting off that adrenaline as he shares some screams and laughs from his block mates, Wonwoo's eyes search for Junhui as they walk toward the grandstand. Again, as if Junhui heard his thoughts, Wonwoo spotted him by the end of the infamous Lover’s Lane with that same bright smile.

> “ _Damn. Who is he?”_

_Present, Wonwoo's dorm_

Despite not being in line with his usual music taste, Wonwoo smiles while listening to Charles Williams' Start ([the theme song for the year](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsPIC9F_RdM)) and remembers that day perfectly. Everything was so new and foreign but he truly felt like he finally belongs to something. Maybe it was just the high of new beginnings, the new campus, the freakin' awesome or library, or the new people with a particularly bright smile he can't forget.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> left a link of the 2014 welcome walk video where the scene is set! i was part of the production of that video and if you look closely, i was even in there ;) 
> 
> this is where wonhui meet, but i'll give a spoiler, this is NOT where they fall inlove.
> 
> message me on twitter if u want: https://twitter.com/seokjintherain/


End file.
